Transauricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Postoperative Analgesia following Arthroscopic Shoulder Surgery: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

IF 3.3 2区医学 Q1 CLINICAL NEUROLOGY

Pain and Therapy Pub Date : 2025-10-13 DOI:10.1007/s40122-025-00785-9

Jia-Yi Xia, Xiao-Min Hou, Ke Liu, Min Kong, Ying Ma, Dania Saif, Hua-Dong Ni, Qi-Hong Shen

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Introduction: Despite growing interest in non-pharmacological analgesia, clinical evidence supporting transauricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) for postoperative pain management following arthroscopic shoulder surgery remains limited. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of taVNS in postoperative analgesia after shoulder arthroscopy.

Methods: Seventy patients scheduled for arthroscopic shoulder surgery were randomly assigned to two groups on the basis fo computer-generated concealed allocation sequences. The intervention group received taVNS once on the day of surgery and once daily for the following two consecutive days, with each session lasting 2 h. The control group received sham stimulation following an identical schedule. The primary outcome was total sufentanil consumption within 24 h postoperatively.

Results: Postoperative sufentanil consumption at 24 and 48 h, resting Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) scores at 4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h, and the requirement for rescue analgesia were all significantly lower in the taVNS group compared with the sham stimulation group (all P < 0.05). In addition, quality of recovery-15 (QoR-15) scores at 24, 48, and 72 h post surgery were significantly higher in the taVNS group (all P < 0.05). No significant intergroup differences were observed in hemodynamic parameters (all P > 0.05). The incidences of nausea, vomiting, constipation, and gastrointestinal dysmotility were lower in the taVNS group, while other adverse events did not differ significantly between groups.

Conclusions: TaVNS demonstrates both safety and efficacy in the management of postoperative pain following shoulder arthroscopy. Its application is associated with a reduction in analgesic requirements and contributes to an improved quality of recovery during the early postoperative period.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier no. ChiCTR2400094087.

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经耳迷走神经刺激用于肩关节镜手术后的术后镇痛：一项双盲、随机、安慰剂对照试验。

导论：尽管人们对非药物镇痛越来越感兴趣，但支持经耳迷走神经刺激（taVNS）用于肩关节镜手术后疼痛管理的临床证据仍然有限。本研究旨在评价taVNS在肩关节镜术后镇痛中的有效性和安全性。方法：根据计算机生成的隐式分配序列，将70例拟行肩关节镜手术的患者随机分为两组。干预组在手术当天接受一次taVNS，随后连续两天每天一次，每次持续2小时。对照组按照相同的时间表接受假刺激。主要观察指标为术后24 h内舒芬太尼总消耗量。结果：taVNS组术后24、48 h舒芬太尼用量、4、6、12、24、48 h静息数值评定量表（NRS）评分、抢救镇痛需求均显著低于假刺激组（P < 0.05）。taVNS组恶心、呕吐、便秘和胃肠运动障碍的发生率较低，而其他不良事件在组间无显著差异。结论：TaVNS在肩关节镜术后疼痛的治疗中具有安全性和有效性。它的应用与镇痛需求的减少有关，并有助于提高术后早期恢复的质量。试验注册：ClinicalTrials.gov标识号。ChiCTR2400094087。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Pain and Therapy CLINICAL NEUROLOGY-

CiteScore

6.60

自引率

5.00%

发文量

110

审稿时长

6 weeks

期刊介绍： Pain and Therapy is an international, open access, peer-reviewed, rapid publication journal dedicated to the publication of high-quality clinical (all phases), observational, real-world, and health outcomes research around the discovery, development, and use of pain therapies and pain-related devices. Studies relating to diagnosis, pharmacoeconomics, public health, quality of life, and patient care, management, and education are also encouraged. Areas of focus include, but are not limited to, acute pain, cancer pain, chronic pain, headache and migraine, neuropathic pain, opioids, palliative care and pain ethics, peri- and post-operative pain as well as rheumatic pain and fibromyalgia. The journal is of interest to a broad audience of pharmaceutical and healthcare professionals and publishes original research, reviews, case reports, trial protocols, short communications such as commentaries and editorials, and letters. The journal is read by a global audience and receives submissions from around the world. Pain and Therapy will consider all scientifically sound research be it positive, confirmatory or negative data. Submissions are welcomed whether they relate to an international and/or a country-specific audience, something that is crucially important when researchers are trying to target more specific patient populations. This inclusive approach allows the journal to assist in the dissemination of all scientifically and ethically sound research.